Facts and figures behind changing times

Damian Farrow and Justin Kemp take a look at the evolution of Australian football.

Remember when the AFL was the VFL and players discussing the problems of travel were referring to an away game against Geelong? The rate of change in football has most certainly kept pace with modern life.

The conclusion of the 2003 AFL season provides an excellent opportunity to review how the game has progressed in contemporary times.

Not surprisingly, football-mad sports scientists from the University of South Australia and the South Australian Sports Institute have attempted to quantify the evolution of Australian football. Their research was based on detailed video analysis of the 1961, 1971, 1981 and 1997 grand finals, chosen as games representative of the style of play for that decade.

The four games were analysed to quantify a series of events that characterise a typical game. This included the time of play, which was defined as all play periods interrupted only by the umpires for a ball-up, throw-in, set shot for goal and score. Additionally, the elapsed time between the occurrence of a mark, free, out of bounds, goal, point, set shot for goal, and ball-up, and subsequent play-on, were also recorded.

Of most concern is that the game is rapidly moving towards the style of American football. That is, play now represents less than half of total game-time. This reduced playing time was in part attributed to the umpires; specifically, it now takes 67 per cent longer to restart the game in a ball-up situation compared with 40 years ago. What took a mere 8.5 seconds in 1961 took 14.2 seconds in 1997.

. . . almost every aspect of the game from the player's perspective is faster.

Similarly, market forces dictate umpires must wait for the television coverage to return from commercial breaks before restarting after goals.

The player's skill levels and movement characteristics are also integral to the changes. Particularly evident is that almost every aspect of the game from the player's perspective is faster. The time taken to dispose of the ball after a mark (less than five seconds) or free kick (less than 10 seconds) has decreased dramatically. The exception is that the average time players spend taking a set shot for goal has increased by an average of 54 per cent. This was explained by an increase in set shots taken, due to players being able to kick from further out, and the impact of sports psychology on pre-kick routines.

The average physical characteristics of the players were also collated. The most interesting finding was that the height of the tallest players is increasing at a significantly faster rate than that of the average for the shortest players. If their respective growth rates continue, the three tallest players in a team will average 213 centimetres by 2050.

Justin Kemp is the exercise physiologist at the Australian Catholic University. Damian Farrow is the skill acquisition specialist at the Australian Institute of Sport. Their new sports science book, 'Run Like You Stole Something', has just been released through Allen & Unwin publishing.